Know who Merlin Mann is?  If you do then you need to listen to his new podcast with Dan Benjamin‘s 5by5 called “Back to Work”.  It’s a bit all over the place (that’s Merlin’s specialty), but it’s also pretty great.  I just hope this one lasts for a while.  Go check it out … Back to Work Podcast URL.

“Baby steps get on the bus, baby steps down the aisle, baby steps …”

– Bill Murray as Bob Wiley in “What About Bob?”

If you suffer from work paralysis, your problem might be that you don’t know how to take “baby steps”.  Just like you can’t eat an entire Thanksgiving dinner in one bite, or weed your yard with a single “pull” … you also can’t get to where you want to be in a single moment.

In “Getting More” the author, Stuart Diamond writes …

An analogy: If you are a .280 hitter in baseball, and you get one extra hit every nine games, you become a .310 hitter in baseball. And that is worth a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and $10 million more a year in compensation.  All for one extra hit every thirty-six times at bat.I’m not trying to hit home runs in negotiations.  I’m trying to get one extra hit every nine games.  It’s a good lesson for negotiation, and a good lesson for life.  A few incremental improvements and you will be fabulously more successful.

Incremental success is not only more reliable, it’s more doable and more done.  Trying to make $10 million off your first website is an exercise in futility and is actually counter-productive.  You first need to “learn the ropes” through small success … base hits … and then move on to more difficult and challenging opportunities.

Just the act of trying dramatically increases your chances that something good will happen.  This is true for a number of reasons:

First, not many people take that simple step … and so the competition is actually quite low.

Also, that initial move toward your goals has great power and will create a momentum.  Baby step your way to your goals and you will reach them with astonishing speed.

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The ideas in this post were generated from a reading of the excellent book “Getting More” by Stuart Diamond.  I have created “tools” and helps for this book for you for free …  just click below to learn how to download them.

Tools:  http://www.curiouspursuit.com/book-tools/

To purchase the book:  http://www.curiouspursuit.com/go/getting-more

More posts about this book: http://www.curiouspursuit.com/category/book-tools/getting-more-by-stuart-diamond/

I’m just finishing a skim read of Barry Schwartz’s book The Paradox of Choice.  I’m sure if I read the entire book it would be very good.  But appropriately, with everything going on in life right now … I chose not to “dive into” this particular tome.

Instead, I did my usual “skim” method on the book …

• Speed read the first chapter to get a feel of the writing style and perspective of the author
• Bold type “skim” until the last chapter (or summary chapter)
• Read the last chapter

As far as I can tell, it was a good method for this book.  The last chapter seems to be a pretty good summary and offers what I’m really after in a book like this anyway … tips and suggestions on “what to do”.  They are some good tips and so I thought I would include them below for reference.

As background, the book argues that increased choice in our society has not made us happier, healthier or smarter.  In fact, much research shows that we are declining on all three and some of that research pinpoints abundant options as one of the fundamental problems.  So what to do?

1. Choose when to choose. Think back on some recent decisions you have made (buying clothes, a car, etc.) and figure out if the time invested was really worth the end result.  Could you reduce the time spent on your decision making and still end up in a “good enough” spot?  Or, could you eliminate some decision making processes altogether?
2. Be a Chooser, not a Picker. Choosers reflect on what is important and take their time on those things that are worth it.  In other words, they are thoughtful and careful.  Pickers jump from one decision to the next without ever pondering if what they are picking matters or not.
3. Satisifice More and Maximize Less. Maximizers are always trying to get more out of everything they do.  Satisficers learn to accept good enough as way to simplify decision making and increase overall satisfaction.
4. Think about the opportunity costs of the opportunity costs. Learn to think less about the features you’ll miss out on by rejecting certain options.  If you have decided that a given option is best … don’t worry about what you might be missing out on.
5. Make your decisions non-reversible. Especially important ones that affect life deeply.  Schwartz gives the example of marriage.  He quotes a minister that once stated … “Yes, the grass is always greener … you will encounter people who are younger, better looking, funnier, smarter or seemingly more understanding and empathetic than your [spouse].  But finding a life partner is not a matter of comparison shopping and trading up.”  Pour energy into making the relationship better, instead of wondering if you could have done better.
6. Practice an “Attitude of Gratitude”. We are happier when we recognize those things that are good in our lives.  Practice with a “gratitude journal” whereby you keep a daily record of 5 or more things that you are grateful for each day.
7. Regret less. Practicing the suggestions above will help us regret less.  Just understand that life is complex and that compromise is a part of the program.
8. Anticipate Adaptation. That new car smell will not be the only thing that will lessen in a couple of months.  You also won’t love the car as much … you’ll be “getting used to it”.  Understand that and expect it when making decisions.
9. Control Expectations. Our evaluation of actual experience is hugely influenced by our expectation of it.  In other words, if you think that night out is going to be the best ever night of your life … it probably won’t be.  Worse yet, you’ll start to color legitimately great things with a worse brush because you expected perfection.
10. Curtail Social Comparison. Don’t worry about what George Clooney, your neighbor, brother, friend, etc. get out of life.  What do YOU want from it and are you moving in that direction?  If so, be elated!  If not, get to the hard work of making it happen.
11. Learn to Love Constraints. Sometimes we feel like the fish in a fishbowl … all life choices constrained and withheld.  But that same fishbowl offers safety and regular food “out of nowhere”.  Learn to love where you’re at … and use the constraints to make life interesting.

After going through those tips and the book I think I can further summarize …

“Be happy with the good you have and learn to simplify your choices by being thoughtful about what you really want.”

I was impressed by this recent article on American athlete’s success at Vancouver (from the Wall Street Journal of all places).  A few things impressed me …

1. How little money was spent to target a “medals race” and yet how much success the team is having … particularly in events not usually dominated by American athletes.

2. How Bode Miller is crediting the ski team’s successful run with a more aggressive and exciting attitude toward their sport.  He says … “the inspiration level is climbing. They see teammates on the podium and they want that, too. It’s not necessarily the result, but they want to be smiling, they want to ski inspired. You’re seeing a result you haven’t seen from the U.S. in a long time, or ever.”

3. The USOC (United States Olympic Committee) didn’t “over promise and under deliver”.  The ATHLETES are delivering in a way that is exciting and fun for us to participate with.  Thank goodness the USOC kept their mouths shut and let the athletes do the “talking”.

All of this inspires in a way that I think we all need right now.

It’s not ALL about the money … even though it’s an important part.

It’s MORE about passion and risk taking.

Shut up and DO the work.

Good things CAN happen.

And OFTEN do when approached the right way.

I was listening to a podcast recently that mentioned the number of books in the Library of Congress in relation to what we can actually take in.  The numbers were a bit old and a bit off.  As best as I can tell there are now over 30 million cataloged books … but over 140 million total items.

You would have to read well over 5,000 of those items every day for 70 years to consume it all.  Insane.  Reading one book every week (close to my current average) for 50 years (close to what’s left of my current life expectancy) would only get me through about 2,600 of those books.

It really begs the question of prioritizing activity and media choices.  Is it worth trying to get through EVERYTHING I possibly can.  I believe it makes more sense to really dig deep in a few areas that are of the most value.  Happiness and fulfillment topping that list.

I read The E-Myth for the first time while I was in college.  At the time it was merely a fascinating read that I tossed aside shortly after finishing.  I recently have come across a few articles, videos and other media that have reminded me of the book and so I’ve picked it up again to take a look.  This time I have the feeling that it can truly help me take my business to the next level … not mere intellectual massage.

If you haven’t read it … you really should.  It actually has application across life, not just in business.

A couple of video hits today … again.

The first is a YouTube capture of Merlin Mann at Macworld.  Talking about creativity … what it is and how to develop it.

So … maybe one day … if I can do what is advised above … I could create something cool and original like below …

To me, life is the ultimate “curious pursuit”.  Curious in two ways … First, the activity and realities of life seem so ill suited the enjoyment of life at times.  So it seems to me like a curious (or odd) puzzle where not all of the pieces seem to fit.  Second, curiosity (or intense intellectual interest) has been to me the one way “through it”. Trying to build understanding so that I can move on and do better, be better.

I have to admit that the last few months have been difficult ones, I have felt the shock of the economy in my business and I’m still not exactly sure the way out.  So how grateful was I for Tim Ferriss’s latest post where he linked to the video below.  He calls it the Prescription for Self-Doubt … I would add “Self Pity” as well.

The election is over … hallelujah!  Of course, the politicos are already back to campaigning?!

Do they ever take any time to think about how they could actually make things a little better?  Or is it all just about the next election and potential power grab?

Solutions seem like a long way away when all you do is try make the other guys bad.

I stumbled across this video today and thought it would make a good post in light of the current economic situation.

My business is having A LOT of trouble right now.  We tend to see our fortune on any given day fall and rise with the sentiment on Wall Street.  I had no idea the two would be so closely tied … but seemingly they are.

Anyway, I found the video below and had one thought after watching THE ENTIRE THING (you have to watch it all, no matter how badly you want to stop) … GATHER STRENGTH AND FIGHT!